Consort Xuan's refusal did not bother Consort Tong. Just as Wan Anran had said, the fact that the third-month celebration could not be held last time because the Twelfth Prince was weak was a regret for Consort Tong. In order to make up for the Twelfth Prince and also to sweep away the bad luck, Consort Tong was determined to organize this full moon banquet properly.
Emperor Kangxi did not want to hold a grand celebration.
However, after Consort Tong's hesitant words and tearful pleas, he finally relented and allowed her to handle the matter. Of course, Kangxi still carefully instructed her: "The Twelfth Prince is frail, Consort Tong must be careful, do you understand?"
"I treat Ah-Mou like my own son, how could I not be careful? Your Majesty, please rest assured!" Consort Tong replied happily.
With the Emperor's approval, Empress Niohuru was even less likely to refuse. She even sent a booklet to Chengqian Palace, instructing Consort Tong that she could send invitations to any imperial concubines and their families she wished to invite.
Of course, the Empress also sent someone to inquire in Xianfu Palace, but Wan Anran politely declined the Empress's offer. Firstly, she was not ready to face her predecessor's family, and secondly, just as she had said to Consort Xuan before, Wan Anran felt that the full moon celebration should be held in a small manner, and that inviting her predecessor's relatives to the palace would be done later when the baby was first born.
As for Consort Tong, she would never refuse.
She sent someone to Kunning Palace to express her gratitude, and then sent out a whole stack of invitations in one go.
Granny Xia frowned.
She said in a deep voice, "Your Highness, the entry of noblewomen and princesses into the palace is Your Highness's exclusive right. How can the Imperial Concubine arrange it so casually? What if the Imperial Concubine—"
The Empress chuckled.
She smiled and said, "It's only for one day, let her be."
November 30th.
The imperial concubines and the Tongjia family entered the palace together to participate in the full moon celebration. The celebration was both joyous and grand, and Consort Tong seemed poised to use it as an opportunity to sweep away the gloom that had hung over Chengqian Palace for nearly a year.
Of course, amidst the excitement, some guests also had some doubts.
After all, it was no secret that the eleventh prince and the twelfth prince were born on the same day, and the royal family members knew that the eleventh prince was much healthier than the twelfth prince.
But why is the 12th Prince absent from the full-moon celebration? Could it be that something happened to the 11th Prince? Is he sick? Or is it that the 11th Prince's birth mother is not favored, hence the lack of a grand celebration? Or... does Consort Tong dislike the 11th Prince overshadowing the 12th Prince? The guests had countless thoughts in their minds, but most were just waiting to see what would happen.
Only Consort Tong's mother, Hesheli, had a different idea. She originally thought that the grand event held in Chengqian Palace was for the two young princes' full-month celebration. What was the purpose of this single person doing it?
Hesheli's heart skipped a beat.
She pulled Granny Zhao aside to speak: "Where are Consort Wan and the Eleventh Prince? Why didn't the Imperial Concubine invite them to the full moon celebration?"
Granny Zhao looked embarrassed.
She replied respectfully, "Madam, His Majesty has already mentioned it, but Consort Xuan has politely declined His Majesty's offer."
Hesheli sighed, rubbing her forehead: "..."
What good intentions could there be? Perhaps her precious daughter offended the other party with her loose tongue?
Hesheli, who knew her daughter very well, had throbbing temples, but the full moon celebration had already begun, what could she do? She glanced at Zhao Mama and said in a deep voice, "The gifts I brought must be delivered to the Imperial Concubine, do you understand?"
Granny Zhao readily agreed.
Seeing her daughter surrounded by several imperial consorts, her face beaming with joy, Hesheli pursed her lips, suppressing her worries and offering a smile as she helped with the hospitality.
It wasn't until the sound of the ban on firecrackers rang out that most of Hesheli's worries subsided. Only after the Emperor bestowed upon her a small golden bow and began talking to the Imperial Concubine did Hesheli's heart finally settle down.
Now that the Emperor has appeared, this matter must have been approved by the Emperor, right? The more Hesheli thought about it, the more certain she became, and her gaze toward the Twelfth Prince became much more benevolent.
Although she wasn't born from the same womb as my daughter, I've raised her since she was a baby, and she'll definitely be a help to my family when she grows up!
Empress Hesheri was full of confidence and helped the Imperial Concubine greet the guests. So busy was she that she did not notice the displeasure in the Emperor's eyes.
Emperor Kangxi was not pleased.
The full moon celebration at Chengqian Palace was far too extravagant!
The Empress did indeed allow the Consort to invite members of the imperial clan to participate—just look at the scene, the wives of Prince Yu, Prince Gong, Prince An, Prince Kang... all of them were high-ranking members of the imperial clan.
Judging from the somewhat awkward smiles on everyone's faces, it was clear that everyone had come thinking that they were celebrating the full moon of Eleven and Twelve.
Kangxi's initial joy vanished, and his dissatisfaction with Consort Tong resurfaced. The Twelfth Prince was frail and needed proper care; this commotion was likely to frighten the child.
Most importantly, he somewhat regretted bringing the Crown Prince and the eldest princess along.
Having seen his chubby eleventh brother, the Crown Prince had high hopes for his twelfth brother, whom he had not yet met. The first thing the Crown Prince did upon entering the palace was to head straight for the cradle, looking at his new little brother with great interest: the twelfth prince in swaddling clothes had a large head and a small body, yellowish skin, and was constantly sobbing, a stark contrast to his eleventh brother.
With just one glance, his beautiful expectations shattered like porcelain.
The crown prince looked completely dejected.
He wasn't interested, and the eldest princess was even less interested. Her gaze swept over the palace servants filling the room, and she inadvertently made eye contact with one of them.
The eldest princess's face paled.
She reached out and gripped the prince's robe tightly, her eyes lowered to the instep of his feet, her body stiff and rigid.
The crown prince asked, somewhat puzzled, "Elder sister?"
The eldest princess's unusual silence alerted him to something amiss. The crown prince smiled and pulled the eldest princess towards the door, saying, "Father, the palace is so boring! My elder sister and I will go play outside!"
Consort Tong frowned.
The Crown Prince and the Eldest Princess really didn't give her any face. She pursed her lips and looked at the Emperor with a slightly aggrieved expression. The problem was that Kangxi didn't notice his cousin's resentment at all and said with a smile, "It's snowing outside, be careful of the slippery ground."
Consort Tong was angry.
Despite her dissatisfaction, she put on a smile and said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I have had the snow outside thoroughly cleaned."
No sooner had he finished speaking than a gasp of surprise came from outside.
Emperor Kangxi's brow twitched, and he quickly stepped forward. He saw that the one who had fallen was Hesheli's youngest daughter, Xiao Tongjia. She was covering her mouth and had knocked out a tooth. She sat on the ground and sobbed loudly.
Is it so it won't fall over?
Facing the Emperor's gaze, and looking at her younger sister who was bleeding and crying in Chengqian Palace, Consort Tong was about to explode.
The Crown Prince and the Eldest Princess were unaware of what was happening behind them, and the two ran straight out of Chengqian Palace. After they had gone some distance away, the Eldest Princess gradually calmed down. She stopped and tugged at the Crown Prince's robe, whispering, "Thank you, Baocheng."
The crown prince waved his hand: "It's nothing."
He wrinkled his nose and stuck out his tongue: "Anyway, I'm not going to get any more tired of Chengqian Palace. Twelfth Brother is ugly and not as good-looking as Eleventh Brother!"
The eldest princess had a faint smile on her lips.
She nodded: "How about we go to Xianfu Palace to see Eleventh Brother? Empress Dowager went there too."
The Crown Prince nodded: "Let's go!"
He didn't ask the eldest princess who she had just seen or why she was so flustered. He just smiled and skipped towards Xianfu Palace.
Compared to the bustling Chengqian Palace, Xianfu Palace was much quieter. However, quiet did not mean not lively. Once the Crown Prince and the First Princess entered the backyard with familiarity, they could see that it was already filled with laughter and singing, and bustling with people.
The Empress leaned leisurely against the corridor.
She sipped a cup of warm wine slowly, occasionally glancing up and smiling as she watched the people playing around in the courtyard.
Also rarely seen is Consort Yi.
Holding a snowball in each hand, she nimbly darted around the courtyard, occasionally launching a surprise attack on Consort Xuan.
Consort Xuan was so angry that she couldn't even control her expression.
Who's afraid of who? Born in Mongolia and confident in her martial prowess, she threw the snowball with tremendous force, chasing after Consort Yi until she turned pale and fled in terror.
Wan Anran was so happy she almost fell over, but Consort Yi grabbed her and used her as a shield, hitting her on the forehead with two snowballs, leaving her standing there dumbfounded.
Lady Nara was both amused and exasperated.
She tried to step forward to stop them, but she was pulled in as well, and the score suddenly changed from one to one to two to two.
Guo Changzai, who was pregnant but had been pulled over by Consort Yi, looked completely bewildered. She gazed at the remarkably composed Empress and cautiously asked, "Your Majesty... is this... alright?"
"They don't care, so what are you afraid of?"
"..." That's true too. Feeling that he had no ability to manage it, Guo Changzai silently picked up a snack, took a bite: Mmm, delicious.
When Crown Prince Bao Cheng and the eldest princess entered, they saw a pile of snowballs flying in the sky. This was much more fun than Chengqian Palace, so the two cheered and crashed into the snowballs together.
2:2:2
Who will be the winner?
Unfortunately, before they could determine a winner, Xia Mama, noticing that the auspicious time was approaching, came out of the house and said, "Masters, the auspicious time is almost here."
The group immediately stopped what they were doing.
They chatted and smiled as they walked into the house. The house was warm and cozy, and Yinzhen, in his cradle, waved his little hands and feet, looking at the people around him, some strangers and some familiar.
Consort Xuan... is still Consort Xuan now.
Consort Yi... she is still Consort Yi.
The one dressed in bright yellow palace attire is… Looking at her features, which bear a striking resemblance to those of Consort Wenxi, the name Empress Xiaozhao came to mind for Yinzhen.
A look of surprise flashed in Yinzhen's eyes.
Logically, Empress Xiaozhao should have passed away before I was born, and for the next few years, my adoptive mother, Consort Tong, managed the palace affairs...
The Empress lowered her head and looked at Yinzhen.
She removed her nail guards and carefully took the eleventh prince into her arms: "Little Peach is so handsome."
"And she's very obedient, she doesn't cry or make a fuss."
"She is so well-behaved and sensible."
The Empress smiled gently, took the silver pendant that had been prepared beforehand from the nanny's hand, and hung it around his neck. Then she handed the little prince over to Zhao the nanny.
The eunuchs who had their heads shaved were ready.
The men worked quickly and soon shaved a peach shape on the young prince's head. The shaved hair was tied with a red string and hung high in the main room so that the young prince could grow up strong and healthy.
After the celebratory ceremony was completed smoothly, Consort Yi eagerly approached and asked, "Could I...cough cough, could I also have a hug?"
Sure enough, they gave themselves away.
I knew she was being unusually attentive; there must be ulterior motives. Turns out, she just wanted to ride on my peach's good fortune!
Consort Yi smiled obsequiously and ingratiatingly.
This completely different attitude from usual made Consort Xuan roll her eyes. She snorted coldly, put on a reluctant posture, and reluctantly placed the peach into Consort Yi's hands: "Take it!"
Consort Yi has a very thick skin.
She was happy to do anything as long as she could hold the little prince! Looking at the soft and cute little peach, Consort Yi was overjoyed. She rubbed and stroked it, and after a long while, she reluctantly moved her face away.
Yinzhen: ...
Was this how Consort Yi used to be? Just when Yinzhen thought his ordeal was about to end, he heard Consort Yi's voice again, calling for Consort Guo to come and touch her.
Guo Changzai: "...Huh?"
Consort Yi said with a serious expression, "What? Sister, come here and touch it quickly. I heard that if you touch a healthy baby, the baby in your belly will surely be as healthy as the Eleventh Prince when it is born!"
Guo Changzai felt a lump in his throat.
Looking at her younger sister's earnest eyes, she softly hummed in agreement. But before Guo Changzai could even reach out to touch her, a commotion arose outside, followed by a palace maid rushing in: "Your Majesty, something has happened!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
